The present invention relates to guides for saws and more particularly to a portable guide for saws that is adjustable through the range of 0 to 180 degrees and includes precise mechanical adjustment to 45, 90 and 135 degrees.
Hand held saws, such as jig saws, saber saws, circular saws and the like, are used extensively to cut sheet, board and beam materials such as wood or plastic. Guides for these saws aid in cutting the material along a straight line at a selected angle. Such guides include a means for locating the guide relative to an edge of the material and a means for guiding the saw. For use at a building site, a fully integrated guide is needed that is simple, easy to use, lightweight and durable. Such a guide should include a means for clamping the guide to the material being cut, a means for selecting the angle and a means for manually locking the guide without tools at the selected angle. The ability to quickly and precisely set the guide to common angles would also be beneficial.
Some simple saw guides function over a limited range of angles. U.S. Pat. No. 1,700,189 to Wikstrom discloses a simple guide that is usable over a range of about 45 degrees to 90 degrees. This guide has a locking means that includes a link, a slot and a bolt that must be tightened with a tool. If this guide is inverted, the guide is still limited to the same range. If the material to be cut can be turned over, this type of guide can be used over twice the range. When the material cannot be turned over, a guide that has a range of 0 to 180 degrees is needed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,134 to Stevens discloses a simple guide for a chain saw for cutting beams that is usable over about 180 degrees and includes an angle gauge. The guide is nailed to the beam and there is no means for locking the locating means at a selected angle relative to the guiding means.
Other saw guides are cumbersome, awkward or complex. These guides have tracks, tables or large templates, and are best used when the material can be brought to the guide. Track type guides are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,536,112 to Kordyban, U.S. Pat. No. 3,584,663 to Yacobucci, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,815,933 to Staniszewski disclose guides with tracks. U.S. Pat. No. 3,586,075 to Larsen and U.S. Pat. No. 3,516,457 to Winters disclose large template type miter guides.
A guide for saws is disclosed including a locating member, a guiding member pivotally connected to and rotatable over 90 degrees relative to the locating member, and a locking means for manually locking the guiding member at a selected angle relative to the a locating member. The locating member has opposed protruding first and second flanges and the guide is invertible with the flanges alternately locating the guide to provide a range of angles over 180 degrees. A clamp slidably attached in one of opposed first and second slots in the locating member secures the locating member to the material being cut. The guide includes an angle gauge for visually setting the guide to any selected angle and positive stops for precisely setting the guide to 45 or 90 degrees without visual reference to the angle gauge. The locking means includes relatively large diameter circular mating faces that are pressed together to lock the angle between the locating member and the guiding member.